Retail roundup: Burberry fakes, J.C. Penney, Fresh & Easy meals

-- Luxury retailer Burberry won $180 million in two separate counterfeiting suits against networks of websites selling fake goods.

Both suits, filed in federal court in Manhattan, accused knockoff artists of hawking items bearing the Burberry name and signature plaid on sites such as "BurberryOutlet8.com" and "Burberrys-Vision.com." The judge in both cases also awarded Burberry a permanent injunction and ordered that the domain names be transferred to the company's control.

Burberry set up a litigation program in 2010 to focus on combating websites selling counterfeit goods. In a statement, the company said it was "very pleased" with the judgments.

"While we have seen significant success to date," Burberry said, "we continue to take action against, and press for maximum penalties to be imposed on, those engaged in this criminal activity."

--J.C. Penney Co., which suffered a $163-million loss in its first quarter after a major price revamp, said it would launch several new labels in an attempt to capture more shopper interest.

In a call with investors, Penney's executives said a private clothing brand called jcp for men and women would debut in August. Penney's also will add collections from such high-end designers such as Betsey Johnson, Cynthia Rowley and Lulu Guinness.

So far, Penney’s much-ballyhooed revamp – which involved swapping out its ongoing sales cycles for year-round low prices – appears to be confusing instead of exciting shoppers. It’s not a good sign for new Chief Executive Ron Johnson, an Apple alum who pushed hard for the initiative when it was launched earlier this year.

-- Just before the summer grilling season starts, Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market is rolling out a "Ready to Cook" line of meats and vegetables that are seasoned and ready to be popped onto the stove or grill.

The line includes more than 50 items of beef, fish, chicken, pork and vegetables, including Atlantic salmon skewers with spicy orange sauce ($5.99) and chili herb sweet potatoes ($3.49).